Bittersweet Hope
by TheBlackNecromancer
Summary: Carlisle's left broken-hearted after the death of Esme, but will a new addition to the Cullen family help him back on his feet again? Or is he putting his entire family at risk once again from the wrath of the Volturi? Carlisle/OC "Breaking Dawn" spoilers
1. Chapter 1

It was cold outside.

Carlisle never noticed.

What does it mean to lose some you love? What does it mean when your heart has been shattered into a million pieces and you don't see the point in trying to pick them up again? Carlisle had kept up his act of being himself for Edward and the rest of his family's sake, but inside his heart was more dead than he thought a vampire's heart could ever be. The skies were grey now, and the blood which most vampires lusted after tasted bitter, like poison to him.

He was alone.

It had been over a year now. A year since the Volturi had came in secret, looking for silent revenge. And so they killed her.

Esme. His love.

There was no definite proof that it was the Volturi, but Carlisle knew it. They all knew it. Edward, Alice, Bella. But what could they do? Vampires had no true laws. The Volturi were the only law.

Carlisle had kept his life much the way it had been before. He still worked at the hospital; after all, why let innocent humans die because of his own grief? He didn't feel the satisfaction that he used to in doing his job however. He didn't feel anything at all nowadays.

Nothing except the pain.

He was currently walking through the woods. He had taken to doing this a lot lately, mainly to keep his thoughts away from Edward. No need to make the boy suffer any more than he already had. He liked the earthy smell of the pine trees; the sound of the wind passing through the trees, making it sound as though they were whistling to themselves, or even as though they were having whole conversations with each other. If they could talk, Carlisle wondered, what would they say to each other? Would they see him walk pass and feel sympathy for his pain, or wound they laugh at the fact a predator like himself could mourn so badly for a death of another. Perhaps the wouldn't notice him at all, and they would continue discussing the weather or life or other pointless topics, just like the humans do.

It was at this point that he caught an unusual scent on the wind. He froze. It smelt like vampires. But it also smelt like humans. He couldn't figure it out.

"Carlisle!" A female voice called from behind him. He spun around only to come face to face with Siobhan and her mate, Liam.

"Carlisle, we need your help."

……………

How he did he always manage to get himself into troublesome situations? Couldn't he just refuse for once? No, he always had to be the polite one…The kind one…The bloody pushover. Normally Carlisle wouldn't have grudged anyone at all his help or advice, but he wasn't really in the mood for being himself at the moment. However, it seems that saying "Yes that's fine," and "Of course I can help," is an automatic reaction of his, one that he can't seem stop any more than he can stop drinking blood.

And so he had agreed. Agreed to take on yet another lost child into his little coven. Only this time it wasn't a vampire. Or a shape-shifter. Or even a half-blood. This time it would be a true Child of the Moon.

A real werewolf.

Siobhan's coven had found her, lost and defenceless, somewhere in southern Ireland. She wouldn't tell anyone who she was or why she had been there, but Siobhan didn't think she was dangerous. She did however think that the girl would be safer in Forks instead of Ireland, for if the Volturi decided to hunt her down she could be disguised as one of the shape-shifters. Carlisle didn't mind helping, especially if it was a blow to the Volturi.

Siobhan, Carlisle and the rest of his family were currently at the house. They had all agreed that it would be best for there girl to be here and Alice seemed especially enthusiastic about the girl coming. He had asked her if she had had a vision, but Alice being Alice refused to tell. Jacob, who had been around playing with Nessie at the time, hadn't been so sure about the whole situation but after mentally contacting the other pack down at the reserve he had also agreed to letting the girl stay. Carlisle was sure that Jacob's curiosity had made the decision for him. Liam had left just a moment ago to get the girl who was waiting with Maggie at the edge of the forest. He wasn't really sure what to expect. All he currently knew about her was that she was around seventeen years old and very shy. He didn't even know her name.

He could hear Liam taking to someone outside. Edward announced that the girl was frightened, he could sense it in her thoughts.

"I'll go," Carlisle murmured softly, getting up from the sofa he was currently sitting in. He went through into the hallway and out through the front door. He spotted Liam and Maggie near a dense clump of trees near the edge of the house. Then he spotted the girl leaning against one of the trees.

She looked frightened.

No, she looked terrified.


	2. Chapter 2

He felt a surge of pity from the depths of his cold soul. It was stronger than any emotion he had felt for along time. There was something strange about her that he couldn't quite place. He looked closer. Her face was broad yet also angular and although she wasn't beautiful in the sense that Rosalie or Alice was, she held herself proudly. Yet she did not look arrogant either. She wasn't particularly tall and her long black mane of hair was a wild and untamed mess. Her clothes were ripped and torn and she did not appear to have any shoes whatsoever. Carlisle watched as she subconsciously tucked some of her hair behind her ear and away from her face. It was then he saw something rather unsettling: A long, white scar that tore down the side of face. It ran from the side of the right eye, down her pale cheeks and to her collarbone. The sight of the scar made him rather uneasy.

He started walking towards her, and watched as she turned around and saw him. She froze and did not move until her was about a metre away from him.

"Welcome," Carlisle said quietly, smiling the best smile he could produce nowadays, "I'm Carlisle, and I am more than happy to welcome you into my family, if that is what you wish." She nodded slowly, evidently still wary of him. She looked at him closely, and Carlisle saw what he had not noticed at first. There was a darkness in her gray eyes, but also warmth. She smiled at him.

"Thank you. I'm Sophia." she finally said quietly. Liam and Maggie turned and looked at her in shock and Carlisle was taken aback by the sound of her voice. She spoke slowly and softly and it contrasted dramatically with the rough appearance.

"I think you should get along well here," Liam muttered in his broad Irish accent. "We shall take our leave now, but thank you for your help Carlisle."

"No trouble at all, I'm more than happy to help." Carlisle replied, and he realised with shock that he actually meant it. Liam nodded and ran with Maggie back up to the house.

He turned to Sophia. "Come on inside and I'll introduce you to the rest of the Cullen family," He watched as she looked carefully at the house in front of her, and then at him. He realised she was still unsure of whether to trust them. He presumed that he must have past the test however, because she moved away from the tree and followed him as he headed back up to the house.

When they reached the living room Sophia paused at the door. Carlisle wasn't at all surprised. A room full of vampires must be a rather intimidating scene. He went in and spoke to his family, who were sitting on the sofa and chairs around in front of the television. They were looking at him, obviously curious. He decided to make the introductions.

"Everyone, this is Sophia. Sophia, this is my family." there was an awkward pause as his family took Sophia's strange appearance in. Then Alice jumped up and walked over to the girl, who still hadn't moved.

"You can have the room next to mine's, if you like," she said, smiling warmly.

"Ok, sure," Sophia replied, and along with some help from Jasper the tension started to disappear from the room.

"Well, I'm glad that's settled," Carlisle said, relieved. If Alice could accept her then the rest would too.

"Come on, I'll introduce you to everyone else," said Alice enthusiastically, grabbing the girl's hand and pulling a rather bewildered Sophia towards the rest of the group.

"Right, so this is Edward, Bella, that's Jasper over there…"

…………………..

Piles of books lay scattered haphazardly across the floor of what Carlisle at one time had fondly called his study. He had been trying to find out some more information about werewolves, but so far had not had much luck. The only thing he had succeeded in was making his study a complete and utter wreck. He climbed over various mountain ranges of encyclopaedias and dictionaries, past a forest of paperback novels and into the corner of his room that was currently an avalanche of myths and legends.

It had only been a few hours later while sitting in his study that he had realised just how little he knew about werewolves. He had thought about simply finding Sophia and asking her, but rather than ask the poor girl a bunch of awkward questions he thought he'd try and find out himself. Besides, she was currently with Alice at the moment trying to find some new clothes and he didn't want to disturb them. Although no doubt Alice was trying to force her into trying on several of the million-and-one different outfits that she currently owned… poor Sophia.

He picked up a book from the pile nearest to him and took it back to his desk. However as soon as he sat down he was interrupted by a knock at the door. Carlisle sighed.

"Come in." he called half-heartedly. The door opened slowly and he watched with amusement as he realised who it was. Sophia stepped into the room. He noticed an immediate difference from earlier. She now wore a clean, plain black shirt with a pair of denim jeans. Her hair had been washed, brushed and was currently tied back in a plait.

"Dr. Cullen… could I speak to you for a minute?" she asked timidly, avoiding his eye.

"Of course," Carlisle said brightly, "And call me Carlisle."

"Carlisle," Sophia amended, grinning. "what's that you're reading?" she then enquired.

"Oh, nothing really," he replied quickly, closing the book on werewolf myths and shoving it hastily into a desk drawer. "So, what can I do for you?"

"Well it's just… about the problem of food…I can eat human food, but I'd prefer hunting… is that a problem?"

"Of course not," Carlisle said, "In fact I'm planning on going hunting later tonight, why don't you come with me?"

"That would be great!" Sophia exclaimed, obviously relieved.

"Well I'll come and find you in about an hour, ok?"

"Thank you." She said, smiling again.

"Is there anything else?"

"No that was it, thanks." He watched as she turned to head out the door. He suddenly spoke without thinking.

"Oh and Sophia," she turned to look at him, "You…the outfit, it suits you."

"Oh, thanks." Sophia replied, blushing. She turned back and hurried out the room.

A few hours later and Carlisle and Sophia were heading out into the forest. It was lucky that werewolves were rather similar to vampires in terms of being able to run fast and to hunt, even when it wasn't a full moon. He was however extremely nervous, as after Esme's death he had taken to hunting alone. But his fears had been unfounded. She seemed to be a naturally quiet girl so he didn't need to keep up a stream of pointless conversation. Instead they walked in a contented silence that suited Carlisle perfectly. They ran for a while through the damp forests until they found a pair of mountain lions. Carlisle brought his one down as quickly as possible so as to avoid inflicting any unnecessary pain to the animal. The both ate their meal in silence. It was only afterwards that Sophia chose to make a strange remark:

"You are very self conscious when you hunt." she stated, looking at him oddly. Carlisle avoided her gaze.

"It has been a long time since I've hunted with someone else…"

"Esme?" she said quietly.

"Yes…how did you know?"

"Alice, she told me…" Sophia explained apologetically.

"Ah," Carlisle nodded slowly, "Of course." He got up from beside the dead mountain lion.

"Shall we go on?" he muttered. It hurt him to think of Esme. Sophia stood up.

"She must have been a very caring person."

"What makes you think that?"

"You loved her." Sophia replied simply, smiling slightly.

"She was very kind…" he shrugged his shoulders, then smiled back. She looked at him, an unreadable look in her eyes. Suddenly she turned and started to run.

"Come on, I smell food nearby." he heard her shout. He ran after her, wondering slightly at how much more the girl was at home in the forest. She was a rather strange girl…


	3. Chapter 3

The Cullen household eventually settled in a routine. During the day Sophia would go to the high school in Forks, which a good thing because it allowed the family to stay in the area just a little longer. In the evenings Sophia would hang around with Alice, Bella and Jacob when they would spend most of their time entertaining Renesmee. Carlisle watched her as she became more and more confident around the others as the weeks went by. She still however hadn't revealed any sort of information about her past. Carlisle hoped that time and patience was all that was needed for that to change. Now when ever he went hunting Sophia came too. He found himself growing more used to having company, but there was still the memories of Esme that lingered at the back of his mind.

Carlisle was currently in his study. It was evening and he was meant to be catching up on some of the paperwork from the hospital. But he found his thoughts drifting off as he looked out the window. He studied the night sky absent-mindedly not really paying that much attention. It was a cloudless night for once and the stars and moon contrasted starkly with the black night. There was once a time when he had found the milky-white light of the moon very beautiful indeed. Nowadays he didn't seem to care much for it. But it he remind him of something: It was nearly a full moon…

A knock at the door interrupted his thoughts.

"Come in." he called, straightening up in his chair. It was in fact Sophia who entered the room.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I was wondering if you had any books I could borrow. Alice said you had a few,"

Carlisle smiled wryly. "I suppose you could say that…" he gestured to the many shelves of books that lined the room. "And I think you'll find the room a bit tidier than last time,"

"Yes," she said, frowning slightly.

"Something the matter?" Carlisle enquired, slightly concerned.

"Hmm…" he watched as she wandered over to one of the shelves, "I preferred it when it was messy…much more character."

Carlisle rolled his eyes. "Is there anything in particular you want?"

"Not really," she mused, pulling a book from the shelf in front of her.

"Well that's helpful." he commented sarcastically.

"I know." she turned and grinned at him. Carlisle placed an elbow on the desk and rested his chin on his hand. He watched as she went methodically around the room, pulling out books every so often before putting them back again. Eventually he spoke.

"You like reading?"

Sophia nodded, not bothering to turn around. "I used to read loads when I was young…" he watched her pause.

She suddenly turned around to look at him, all traces of humour gone. "Does it not bother you that I haven't told you any thing about me? Even when you have welcomed me into your family, shared your life with me?"

This surprised Carlisle greatly. "I figured you would tell me in your own time. I don't feel any need to rush you."

"Even when I could be putting you all in danger?" she whispered, shaking her head.

"Danger from what?"

"The Volturi of course! Didn't those other vampires tell you?"

"I would never let them harm you, Sophia." Carlisle nearly growled.

"But what about your family-"

"You are part of this family now." Carlisle stated quietly, looking her in the eye.

Sophia turned back towards the books and quickly pulled one from the shelf. She headed to the door, before turning back to face him. She looked at him, shook her head and headed out the room.

Once the door shut Carlisle placed his head on the table, trying to be rid of the emotions that were going around in his head. He had never felt so protective of anyone in a long time. Was it because it was to do with the Volturi? Carlisle thought so. But even then…he didn't know what to do. What if Volturi did come? Would he risk his family for her? How could he? But he couldn't leave her to die. For some reason that thought caused him more pain than he thought it would. Perhaps it was just because he had grown so used to her company so quickly. Perhaps he felt responsible because she trusted him…

He finally got up from his desk, realising he wasn't going to get any more paperwork done tonight.

He went downstairs, hoping to find some sort of distraction, only to find Edward and Alice sitting in the living room.

"Were is Bella and Jacob?" Carlisle enquired.

"Just putting Nessie to bed." Edward replied, looking up from the television. Carlisle went over and sat on the nearest seat.

"Did Sophia find you?" Alice asked. Carlisle nodded in reply.

"Is there something wrong?" Edward asked him suddenly, clearly concerned.

"No, nothing really," Carlisle replied. He stood up again, realising that he didn't need Edward seeing his thoughts at the moment. Instead he decided to go outside, were he could sort out his thoughts in peace. Alice and Edward stared at him in confusion as he left the room almost as quickly as he had arrived.

Once he was outside he sat down on a rock by the river and found himself soothed by the fresh air. He stayed there for ages, listening to the forest around him. Eventually he wondered how long he had been sitting there. Then he heard footsteps behind him. He looked up only to find Sophia coming towards him.

She smiled apologetically. "I, I came to apologise for my little outburst earlier."

"Apologise? Why should you apologise?" he looked at her sideways. "You done nothing wrong."

She sighed. "Thank you Carlisle… you are a good person." she came over and sat down beside him, and neither spoke for a while.

"I used to be a normal child you know," she began, her voice as soothing as ever.

"Weren't we all," Carlisle commented dryly. She laughed softly. It was an unusual sound, but not unpleasant.

"You know what I mean," she looked away. "I was seventeen when I first became a werewolf. He, the werewolf who made me, wanted me as a companion…but I hated him. Hated him from taking me away from my family. From everything I knew. So I…I fought him, and I won. He escaped, but he was badly injured. He was captured and killed by the Volturi a day later. I…I regretted that more than anything. I didn't wish him to be dead, no matter what he had done to me…" she reached up and subconsciously touched the scar on her face. Carlisle found himself rather shocked at this sudden influx of information.

"And he was the one who gave you that scar?"

Sophia nodded sadly. "Now it is a constant reminder of what happened…"

"And even now you still feel guilt…" Carlisle was seeing the pain in her eyes for the first time.

"Wouldn't you?" Sophia whispered, looking up at him from where she was sitting.

Carlisle paused before answering. "Perhaps, yes. But that doesn't make it your fault. In the end it was still the Volturi who killed him."

"You really hate the Volturi don't you?"

"Yes. More than anything." he replied with a bitter smile. "And I've always been a non-violent person."

It was then that Sophia sighed and leant her head against his shoulder. "I feel safe when you're around." she whispered to him, closing her eyes.

He didn't know what to say.


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you for all the great reviews I've had so far, I appreciate them a lot!**

………………………………

As for the rest of the night, they simply talked. That was all. It had been so long since Carlisle had been able to talk so freely about Esme. It was made easier because Sophia had never met her before, so she was able to listen without passing any judgements about any of his choices. For even now he felt as though he had failed to protect her from the Volturi, and the sheer weight of this guilt had nearly driven him to madness. But he wasn't able admit this to any of his family. He didn't want any of their pity, however well intentioned it would be. He loved them all so dearly but he knew that if he fell apart, the rest of the family would too.

The next evening there was a full moon outside. Carlisle had agreed to stay with Sophia during her transformation, mainly for moral support. She had assured him that there shouldn't be any problems providing there were no mortals about, but privately Edward had warned him that he had seen her thoughts and with real werewolves the transformation was rather painful. Also he had mentioned that while the changes took place the person would be highly dangerous to any human that was close by. This worried Carlisle more than he let on, and as they were heading out into a clearing in the woods, he had eventually decided to ask Sophia why she had not warned him. Her answer had been simple: Alice had told her that she had already seen that it would all go perfectly well.

Of course Alice had been quite right. He had watched before his eyes as the small, raven-haired girl had transformed into a rather large wolf, complete with rather sharp looking teeth. He had remembered Edward's warning and had only just managed to restrain himself from running over when she had cried out in pain. Her fur of course was jet-black and he had noted with mild amusement that her grey eyes still had that same appearance of both warmth and darkness in equal measures.

They had spent the rest of the night hunting as usual, and it was a rather enjoyable experience overall, except one tiny little incident. They had ran into the La Push pack of wolves near dawn, and although they had been wary of the newcomer at first, within around five minutes she was playing and wrestling with them like they were all old friends. It had the rather bizarre appearance of a group of domestic dogs that hat ran into one another at the local park, only these dogs were around ten times bigger than normal and somewhat more dangerous. He had been watching Sophia running around when the wolf Carlisle knew as Sam had obviously taking offence at something she had done. He had watched as the huge brown wolf had spun around and bared his massive teeth in a gesture that was obviously meant to be a warning.

Before he had realised it Carlisle had let out a deep, menacing growl that still shocked him even now. He was probably the least violent vampire that had ever existed. All the wolves had turned to look at him in surprise.

"Come on Sophia, it is nearly dawn." he had murmured quietly. "We should get going." He had watched as Sophia had given the rest of the group what Carlisle could only presume was an apologetic glance before running over to him and nuzzling his hand, which he hadn't even realised was clenched into a tight fist. He had nodded once to the rest of the group before turning and striding swiftly away from the pack. He then broke into a run, followed immediately by Sophia. It was only once he they had gone quite a distance that he slowed back down into a steady walk. He hadn't quite understood what had happened back with the wolf pack, except that for one reason or another the predator part of his vampire nature had taken exception to the threat posed by Sam. He didn't understand why and now he felt rather ashamed of his behaviour. Carlisle had always been known as the one who _didn't _lose his temper. He had decided that he would make amends by explaining what happened to Jacob when he got back, as no doubt Sam had already explained to him, through their telepathic links, what had taken place. Meanwhile he had Sophia to deal with.

She was still in her wolf form but he could feel her gaze burning into him, no matter how much he tried to avoid looking at her. He realized she wouldn't stop until her gave some sort of answer. He stopped and stood still. She sat down a few metres away from him and continued to stare at him. It was extremely unnerving.

"Em…I don't really know what happened back there…I guess I must just be tired or something…" he broke off, not really sure what to say. "I'm sorry Sophia; I really shouldn't have reacted like that." Sophia continued to stare at him, not responding in the slightest to his little monologue. "Sophia…Is that ok… Sophia? Please-" Without warning Sophia interrupted with a loud, rasping bark that sounded like she was laughing, and a comical wolfish grin appeared on her face. As she padded over to him Carlisle resisted the urge to smile. "That really wasn't nice you know," He told her unconvincingly as she nuzzled his hand affectionately.

…………………………

The next few months flew by and Carlisle found out more and more about Sophia and her past. He now knew her likes and dislikes, what she enjoyed doing in her spare time, her favourite books and T.V. programmes, and yet there always seemed to be more to what she told him than what there appeared to be on the surface. She had the strange habit of talking in riddles, or forgetting to finish sentences, and sometimes the strangest things would distract her. For example the sound of raindrops or the whisper of the wind could end any kind of conversation on a cliff-hanger. Yet Carlisle liked her all the more for these traits.

Eventually it was nearing Christmas, which thanks to Alice (who loved any excuse for a party) always promised to be a big event for the Cullen family. However, it would be a lot more sober than it had been in the past as it was in fact their second Christmas without Esme. Her enthusiasm for family events such as Christmas had been second only to Alice herself. Nevertheless, Carlisle was determined once again to put a brave face on, as much for his family's sake as his own. Alice of course seemed to be in agreement with this policy, so therefore it was not much to Carlisle's surprise when one evening he had came home from the hospital to find the entire house looking like Blackpool illuminations. Millions of tiny multi-coloured fairy lights surrounded both the house and the adjacent trees, and from what he could see through the windows a huge, seven-foot pine tree stood pride of place in the centre of the living-room that had also been drowned in a sea of lights, sparkly tinsel and what appeared to be mistletoe. The scene was completed by the fact it was currently snowing, and the house was already blanketed in several feet of it. Carlisle shook his head and smiled. Alice didn't half like to make a big deal of things.

As for Christmas Eve it had been decided that the whole family would go ice skating. Naturally the Cullen's version of ice-skating involved a giant, secluded inland lake to the north and nearly a dozen pairs of vampire-proof ice-skates. Around lunchtime they made their way to the frozen lake and Alice had reliably informed him that it would be a crisp yet clear day, perfect for a spot of skating. There was a great amount of festive spirit in the air as the group reached the frozen lake shore, and true to Alice's prediction the cold winter sunlight reflected off the surface of the ice and surrounding snow, making the frozen water look like a sea of diamonds.

"It's beautiful…" Carlisle heard Sophia whisper in amazement from beside him. Emmett and Edward were first onto the untouched ice, swiftly followed by Jasper and Alice. Rosalie followed more slowly while Jacob and Bella together were helping Nessie into her boots.

Carlisle was about to step onto the ice himself when Sophia coughed self-consciously. He turned to look at her, puzzled.

"Em…Carlisle…" she glanced at him awkwardly. "I'm not sure how to say this," he was now rather concerned by her tone of voice.

"Go on, tell me," he enquired, very seriously.

"I…You see…" She looked away from him. "I…well… I don't know how to skate." She muttered finally, looking at the ground. He started to laugh, relieved that this was all that was the problem. She glared at him in irritation. "Well I'm glad someone finds it funny-"

"I'm sorry Sophia, I just thought it was something, well…more serious." He grinned at her and she started to smile back, a slight blush spreading across her pale face. "Tell you what, I'll teach you,"

"All right then," she shook her head in defeat, "But if I fall-"

"Then I'll catch you,"

Before she could protest he had pulled her onto the ice and grasping both her hands, which were by contrast to his extremely hot, he started to pull her along the ice, simultaneously explaining how she should move her feet. Eventually she got the hang of it but still refused to let go.

"How is it that a werewolf who can outrun a deer and outfight a grizzly bear be so scared of falling on ice?" Carlisle enquired teasingly.

"I just prefer not to make a fool of myself," Sophia replied, sticking her tongue out.

"And what if I let go? What makes you so sure I'll catch you?"

"I trust you Carlisle."

With that reply in mind Carlisle chose that moment to see how well she would cope going solo. He let go of her hands and moved away from her, still skating backwards.

"Carlisle!" she gasped while trying to regain her balance.

"See, you can do it!" he shouted, laughing at the look of shock on her face. However, he was so busy paying attention to her face he forgot what he was doing with his feet. One of his skates caught in a patch of rough ice and before he knew it he was losing control of his balance. Sophia, who had been skating towards him at the time, panicked and ran right into him, and on impact they both came crashing to the ground.

"Oh god, I'm so sorry!" Sophia said, laughing at the same time. Carlisle turned his head only to find himself nose to nose with the girl who had landed on top of him. He grinned, not quite sure what to say in such an unusual situation. It was then that he caught the scent of her blood. He had never really noticed it before. It was rather pleasant but also strange, like a human but not. It reminded him of the forest, of pine trees in the spring rain…

"Are you both ok?" he heard a voice call from somewhere nearby.

........................


	5. Chapter 5

**_Thank you for all the brillant reviews, Please keep it up!_**

.......................

"We're both fine," Sophia called as she finally climbed off him. He propped himself up onto his elbows in an effort to see who was speaking. It was in fact a rather concerned looking Edward, and standing beside him was Emmett, who seemed to find the whole situation rather amusing.

"That had to be the funniest thing I've seen all day!" Emmett cried, shaking with laughter.

"Glad to be of service," Carlisle commented dryly, pulling himself back onto his feet with the aid of Alice, who had just arrived at the scene. He then held his hand out to Sophia who, grasping on to his arm, eventually managed to stand up too. It was then that Carlisle caught the look on Edward's face. He looked as though he was in shock.

"Edward, what's wrong?" Carlisle asked him, no longer smiling. Edward didn't even seem to acknowledge that he had spoken at all.

"Alice, I need to speak to you, now." Edward announced, grabbing Alice and pulling her away before anyone had time to react.

"What was that about?" Sophia said, turning to Emmett.

He shrugged in response. "I know as much as you do. Tell you what, I'll go over and find out."

Carlisle nodded in agreement and watched as Emmett departed, leaving himself and Sophia alone once more. He turned to her and smiled.

"You know, while we're waiting I think I might take you around the lake edge again."

"As long as you promise not to let go this time!"

"I promise,"

Meanwhile Edward had pulled Alice as far away from everyone else as was possible without leaving the lake altogether.

"Edward, what the hell is wrong with you?" Alice hissed at him as quietly as she could.

"I'm worried about Carlisle-"

"Aren't we all? It doesn't mean you need to drag me halfway across-"

"No! I mean, after he fell on the ice I just happened to catch a glimpse of his thoughts," Edward started to explain quickly. "And, well…he seems to, you see…well, rather enjoy the smell of Sophia's…of her blood."

"Oh god! Do you mean like, he's in love with her or something-"

"No! No! Of course not," he backtracked hastily. "I mean Carlisle has far more sense than that. As far as I can tell he treats her like a daughter,"

"So what's the problem then?"

"Well it could be dangerous if she ever happens to, oh I don't know, cut herself or something-"

"Carlisle has more control than that, and you know it!" Alice insisted stubbornly.

"Oh, really? Then what about the incident with the wolves a few months back?"

"That was one time Edward, one time. Has anyone ever told you that you worry far too much?"

"Frequently," he smiled grimly. "Look, can you just keep an eye on his future for me? Please?"

"Fine, fine." Alice replied, shaking her head despairingly. "But you owe me big time Edward Cullen."

………………………………

_Thump. _

Carlisle looked up from the book he was currently reading.

_Thump._

He sighed, got up and walked over to one of the living room windows. Sliding it open he ducked as another incoming snowball missed his head by inches.

"Do you think you lot could try and _avoid _hitting the windows for a change?" he said wearily to the group of vampires and werewolves who were currently having the world war three version of a snowball fight.

"Sorry doctor, but it's pretty mental out here!" he heard Jacob call from near by. Carlisle, realising defeat, closed the window and went back over to pick up his book. However, as he was about to sit down he noticed that Sophia, who was currently curled up in another chair with his copy of _Dracula_, had a rather ill concealed smirk on her face. He raised his eyebrows.

"Something the matter?"

"I think you are fighting a losing battle there," she replied, still smirking.

"It's the same every year on Christmas day, a tradition really." he shrugged and sat down again.

"I suppose when you are immortal you can afford to go around in circles." Sophia stated very cryptically.

"What exactly do you mean by that?"

"You kind of have all the time in the world to repeat yourself, theoretically speaking."

"Right…" he replied, stuck for answers. He was silent for a minute. "…Well, I hope you don't envy us vampires. We do pay the price for immortality, after all." he smiled rather sadly. Sophia looked up at him from her book, a strange expression appearing on her face.

"Don't you know?" she asked him in a now subdued tone.

"Know what?"

"That Children of the Moon are immortal too…" she trailed off, looking away from him.

"No, I didn't know that actually." he said, clearly surprised.

"Well, there you go then," she sighed and looked down at her book again. "I guess you won't be getting rid of me for a long, long time."

He put his book down onto the coffee table and went over to sit down beside her.

"Did I ever, ever once say I wanted rid of you Sophia? Do you really think that of me?" He reached out and tucked a stray strand of her long black hair behind her ear. He heard her take a deep breath.

"Has…has anyone ever told you smell nice?" she told him shyly.

Carlisle was taken aback by this. "Nope, never."

"You do. Like dew in the morning, or…" she took his hand and sniffed it. "Like honey,"

He smiled at the compliment. She moved her head slightly and he caught the earthy scent of her blood; it was a shock just how good it smelled. Stronger than any blood her had smelt before…then he caught the sound. The cadence of her beating heart. He looked at her and as he stared into her misty, grey eyes he heard her heart beating faster, faster, faster…

Carlisle dropped her hand and ran. He ran up the stairs, through his study and into the adjacent bathroom. He locked the door and slid down onto the floor, leaning his head against the cool tiles, closing his eyes. He needed time to think. Was…was he in love with her? He had never thought he could fall in love with anyone else after Esme. He had never thought that he would feel hope again. Yet that's what she made him feel. Hope.

_Esme would have wanted you to be happy…_

_How can I know what she would have wanted, she's dead, remember? If she was still here I wouldn't be in this mess in the first place…_

_Wouldn't you? If Esme was still here then Sophia would be too, then what would you have done?_

_I loved Esme!_

_But you love Sophia too…_

_She makes me happy…_

_Exactly!_

_But it's still not right; she's young enough to be something like my great-great-great granddaughter for God's sake! I was supposed to look after her, not fall in love with her…_

_Yet here you are…_

Carlisle opened his eyes. He could still smell her blood. He could still hear the pounding of her heart. He tried to forget it, but it was to no avail. Then there was a knock at the door.

"Carlisle, I know you're in there." he heard Sophia call from outside.

Oh God.

Sophia.

He stood up, realising that she would want to know why he had ran off like that. He unlocked the door and pushed it open. Sophia was leaning against the nearest bookcase, black hair hanging over her eyes. She wasn't smiling.

"How did you know I was here?" he asked her, stepping into the study.

She shrugged, glancing at the bathroom behind him. "I guessed you would hide in the last place any normal person would look."

He nodded. That made sense, in a strange kind of way. "I'm sorry, I just…" he trailed off, startled by the look on her face.

"Carlisle, be honest, why did you let me stay here?" she asked him, looking him in the eye.

"I wanted to look after you, to take care of you!" Carlisle nearly growled. He was fed up of repeating the same argument over and over.

"Do you still think of me as a child, Carlisle?" she asked him, stepping closer.

"No…" he whispered softly, "Certainly not. I could not think that even if I tried."

"Then why are you so protective of me?" she took both his hands in hers. "Of your feelings?"

"I don't know," he muttered, shaking his head. He let go of one of her hands and reaching up to her face he gingerly tucked some of her hair behind her ear. "I like to be able to see your face…" he explained to her, feeling suddenly rather self-conscious. Sophia smiled at this, then lifted her free hand and placed it on his cheek.

"Sophia," Carlisle murmured suddenly.

"What?"

"I can hear Alice talking downstairs. She wants to see me-"

"Don't go," she whispered. Then, ever so gently, she stood up on her tiptoes and kissed him on the lips. Carlisle froze at first. He wasn't sure what to do; to leave, to stay, to…Then, he simply gave in.

Returning the sentiments with equal passion, he pulled her in closer and kissed her more forcefully…but now he could hear footsteps on the stairs. Sophia had her hands entangled in his hair. He could hear someone calling his name. His hands were around her waist; he could taste her scent on her skin. The heat of her body burned against his icy skin. Footsteps coming closer, closer, closer until…

He pulled away just before Alice walked in the door.

"Hey Carlisle, Edward and Emmett sent me in to check…" Alice paused mid-sentence. "Sorry, have I interrupted something?"

"No Alice, of course not. We were just talking." He could only hope that his smile was genuine enough to carry through the lie. Apparently it was.

"Alright, ok," Alice replied, smiling again. "Well, Edward seemed to be under the impression that it wasn't good for you to be cooped up in the house all day, you know how he worries far too much, so I was thinking…"

Carlisle stopped listening and looked over at Sophia, wondering what exactly he was letting himself in for.

……………………………


	6. Chapter 6

_**Firstly, I hope this chapter might inadvertently help to answer some questions about ages, Although Carlisle's is only an estimate so don't kill me if it isn't exact!**_

_**And thank you once again for all the brilliant reviews and please feel free to check out my new Carlisle video  
(**__**www. you tube. com /user/Kathrynann1112 [without spaces])**_

…………………

In the end Alice had only wanted to see if they would come out and join them in some sort of race the rest had planned out for Boxing Day. However Carlisle knew he needed to speak to Sophia in private; to straighten things out. So he told Alice that he had promised to take Sophia back to the frozen lake tomorrow and Sophia, catching on, had remarked that she was really looking forward to it. Once Alice left the first thing he knew he had to do is warn Sophia about Edward, hoping that he wasn't nearby.

"Look Sophia," he began. "We, we can't talk now because…well, I don't know if ever told you about how Edward can-"

"Read minds?" Sophia interrupted, nodding. "Yeah, Alice warned me."

"Ok, that's good," Carlisle smiled slightly, rather relieved he didn't have to explain that particular problem. "Well in that case do you think, perhaps you could-"

"Make sure I don't think anything inappropriate? I'll try my best," She grinned at him.

"Well, then we should probably head down stairs now." he finished awkwardly, looking at the floor.

She nodded in agreement and together they made their way down the stairs, Carlisle fervently hoping that he could keep himself distracted for the rest of the evening while Edward was around.

……………………….

It was rather overcast outside the next day, and according to Alice there was a high possibility of a storm. As if he didn't have enough to contend with. Of course it wasn't although the rain would bother him, the vampire, but he didn't think it would do Sophia much good. Of course he was wrong.

"I love the rain!" Sophia told Alice enthusiastically as the two were coming down the stairs.

"And you're sure you don't want to come to the race?" Alice pleaded with her. "We could do with having someone there who could actually beat Edward for a change."

"Wait, don't you know who is going to win already?"

"Yup, Edward of course. But you know what they say about the fun being in taking part," Alice winked at Carlisle who was standing at the bottom of the stairs. "Sure you don't want to come either? Even out the odds a little bit?"

"No, I think I'll enjoy the walk better," Carlisle replied truthfully, deliberately choosing to ignore Sophia who was standing behind Alice and smirking at him in a way that was really rather distracting…

"…So we'll see you later, ok Carlisle? Carlisle?"

"Oh, sure, sure that's fine Alice," Carlisle replied absentmindedly, glancing outside that the impending rainstorm.

They went in silence as they travelled to the lake. Carlisle was still trying to figure out what to say. He still couldn't think of anything by the time they arrived, so instead he decided to ask something that had been bothering him for a while.

"How old are you exactly?" he asked her as they sat down on a fallen tree trunk near the shore.

"Oh, well I became a werewolf when I was seventeen, and I'm nearly nineteen now." she turned and smiled at him. "Why do you ask?"

Nineteen. Oh God. "And how old do you think I am?" He tried to sound casual but his voice came out rather strained.

"Well I'm guessing you were in your early twenties when you were created, and you've obviously been around for a while-"

"Thanks," he murmured dryly.

She rolled her eyes. "…so I'm going to guess somewhere in the mid-hundreds."

"Not even close…" he sighed, watching as raindrops began to fall onto the lake, melting away any of the remaining snow that surrounded them. He turned to look at her. "I'm three hundred and sixty-six years-old."

The look that appeared on her face would have made him laugh any other day. Now it only served as a sharp reminder of the mess they were in. "Wow…" she murmured quietly to herself. "Really?"

Carlisle nodded silently, wondered what would happen now. He watched her as she looked out over the lake, wondering what was going through her head. "I would more than understand if you didn't want to be involved in any way-"

She suddenly turned and grinned at him in her wolfish way. "Look, I can live with the age thing if you can, ok?"

"I'm afraid to say I don't think I have much choice in the matter," he said in a mock serious voice, and reaching out he took one of her warm hands in his.

She laughed and shook her head. "But seriously," she continued, her voice more sombre now. "What will we do?"

Carlisle took a deep breath, realising that this would be the most difficult part. "Look Sophia, I can't let the others know about us…it's just too soon, they've still not gotten over the loss of Esme…and to be quite honest neither have I."

"That…that's fine, I mean, you are the person that holds the Cullen family together after all…" Now it was Sophia's voice that sounded rather strained.

"Well I wouldn't say that," Carlisle interrupted with a modest smile, "But I can see that keeping our…our relationship a secret doesn't seem to agree with you."

"Well it's not that exactly," Sophia started to explain hesitantly. "It's just…I don't like being the one who is going to make you to lie to the people who love you the most."

"It would hurt them more if they felt that you were replacing Esme," he took her hand to his lips and kissed it softly. "I want the rest of my family to like you, not to hate you."

Sophia shook her head sadly. "But then it will be most likely you they will hate when they find out that Carlisle, the patriarch and founder of their noble vampire beliefs, has been lying to them to cover up an inappropriate relationship with a werewolf!"

"I'm sure we can figure something out so that they don't need to find out until the right moment-"

"How on earth do you think you will mange that when you live with Alice, Edward and Jasper?" Sophia asked incredulously.

"As long as we avoid giving any of the three any reason to be suspicious, it will be fine," Carlisle reassured her. "Trust me, I've been living with them long enough."

Sophia sighed softly, looking into his eyes. "If you're sure."

"Positive." Carlisle whispered and leaning in he kissed her on the lips once more. Inwardly he tried to reassure himself that he was doing the right thing; he only wished he could feel as confident as he had sounded.

…………………………

Edward was, as predicated, the first to arrive at the finish line and was sitting on one of the lower branches of a pine tree when he first heard the piercing screams. He immediately searched the immediate area and found that the only mind in the vicinity was a human half a mile away. He could only make out from the human's disjointed thoughts that he or she had been injured in some way, and realising he was the only person near by he knew he had to go and investigate. So, jumping off his perch he headed off at a run to find the human.

As he was nearing he stopped hearing the human's thoughts, so instead he had to track by scent; by the time he reached the body of what he thought was a male he realised why: the human was dead. Ignoring the near overpowering stench of blood he ventured closer to try and find out the cause of death. It at first appeared to be a wild animal attack, but that didn't seem to match with the wounds on the body. Edward could only think of one other conclusion, and that was that it had been a vampire attack, and for some reason the vampire had ran off without finishing it's meal.

He heard someone calling his name and he turned away from the mangled body only to find Alice and Jasper coming towards him, looking deeply concerned.

"I saw that you would change path, so me and Jasper came to find out why." Alice told him, frowning slightly. "So what do you think happened?"

Edward looked at both of them, before turning back to the body. "I pretty sure was a vampire attack."

Jasper nodded. "Look's like it, and obviously the venom didn't have time to spread completely before he died."

"So what shall we do?" Edward asked Alice, who was looking rather apprehensive.

"We need to find Carlisle and warn him."

…………………………..


	7. Chapter 7

_**As always thank you for the great reviews, and I would just like to add that I had been thinking about adding a bit from Sophia's point of view for a while, so I'm glad someone actually suggested it! Always a plus as an author to know that the readers are thinking along the same lines as you...**_

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Sophia sat on the dead log beside the lake and watched as Carlisle paced the edge of the slush-covered shore, apparently lost in thoughts as deep as the black, icy water that lay before them. She knew that despite his assurances to her that he knew what was best for his family, he had very little confidence in himself at the moment. Alice had told her once that this hadn't always been the case; once he could make decisions and feel as though he was doing the right thing, no matter how hard the decision might have been to make. But Bella and Alice had explained to her one evening that the death of Esme had shaken this confidence badly. Sophia had been told that he blamed himself for what happened, despite the fact that to this day no-one knew why it had taken place. She had also been told that since she had arrived, he had started to become less of a shadow of his former self. Alice said that she thought that it was a kind of project to him, having someone new in the family. _'Poor Alice,' _Sophia thought to herself rather guiltily. _'If only she knew the truth.'_

She continued to watch him as he stepped to look out onto the lake, the light rain starting to soak through his clothes and golden blond hair. A pale, gray light was present and it made Carlisle seem far more human; far more vulnerable. She sighed to herself, remembering a time once, not too long ago, when she had been human. She had even had a family; parents, no siblings. Friends too, not close ones really but they had been friends nevertheless. People that she had once trusted and loved. Everything had changed when she was bitten. It had been a secret too huge for her to tell anyone, and so she had ran away.

She had grown up in a small village just outside of Glasgow in Scotland. It had been a small mining village that back in the late eighteen and early nineteen-hundreds and had been a hive of activity during the Industrial Revolution, but by the time she had been born and raised there the mines had been long closed and the town had ended up lethargic and rather empty, mainly due to lack of jobs. However, there had been some perks about living in that particular town, mostly the forested areas nearby where her and her friends had spent many a summer exploring. It had been one particular evening in November when while going to meet with her friends that she had caught a glimpse of what she had thought to be some sort of stray dog. It of course turned out to be the werewolf that she had mentioned to Carlisle before. Andrew, his name was. He had been looking for a companion to keep him company, especially as the Volturi had hunted down and murdered almost every Child of The Moon in existence. At the time, of course, Sophia had not known any of this and so, frustrated and angry with her new life, she had lashed out at him. After this she ran away from her home; from her old life, not wishing to put any of them in danger. She ended up travelling all around Europe, always trying to stay ahead of the Volturi who would no doubt have killed her on sight. But it was a lonely and desolate existence. She found she could not stay anywhere or grow close to anyone, so instead she had stayed away from humans entirely. It was while she was leading the Volturi a merry dance through Ireland that she had encountered Siobhan's Coven. Naturally she had been wary but knew from their eye colour that they where different. They too had felt rather bitter towards the Volturi after certain recent events and were perfectly happy to aid her in travelling to America, where she had been told there was a Coven where she would be far safer than anywhere in Europe, partly due to the presence of the shape-shifting wolfs. Eventually Sophia had agreed to go, tired of the constant travelling and loneliness of the past few years.

And so she had met Carlisle.

Her only real problem know was that as she got to know the Cullens more and more she felt the guilt of the risk she was putting them in growing also. But at the same time she was trapped by her new-found love she had developed for Carlisle. He had always fascinated her, even from day one. She had seen straight away in his eyes the look of someone who had travelled alone and still bore the scars from it, yet he was now loved by so many people. Someone who could see both the light and darkness of human nature and forgive others because of it. He even had a natural instinct for saving lives, even though he had been a vampire for so long and could have so easily given up. He was a puzzle to be sure, one that she was determined to unravel.

She got up and walked over until she was standing just behind him. She placed a hand on his icy shoulder.

"You're troubled." she stated quietly.

"Yes." he replied softly, still looking out across the dark depths that lay before him as though they contained some sort of code or hidden message.

She reached up and ran her fingers through his wet hair. "You won't find the answers out there, I'm afraid." she told him, receiving a small smile in return.

"Of course," He reached up and taking her hand he kissed it softly. "I know."

………………………………

Carlisle and Sophia had arrived at the house that evening only to find a very bleak assembly in the living room. All the Cullens plus Jacob and Sam where gathered there.

Alice stood up as soon as they entered. "We've been looking all over for you." she told him reproachfully.

"We were at the lake," Carlisle replied looking around the room in confusion. "You must have just missed us…what's the matter?"

Alice looked over to Edward, who was looking graver than usual. "We found a dead body out in the woods."

"Who? What happened? Did you call the Police?" Carlisle asked quickly.

Alice answered equally fast. "Ben Thompson; Attacked by something; Police have been alerted and are at the scene now."

Carlisle nodded, taking it all in. "What did you tell them?"

Edward answered this time. "Wild bear attack. We think that the man was a hiker."

Sophia interrupted at this point. "However, guessing by the fact that you are all here I am going to presume that it was something worse."

"Yup," Alice replied, smiling grimly. "_We_ think it was a vampire attack."

Carlisle's face went blank. '_Volturi.'_ was naturally his first thought. Not that he would admit it. "Nomad, perhaps?" he enquired out loud, doubtfully.

"We think so, but we can't be sure." Alice replied gently, obviously guessing his thoughts.

"Whatever it was, it must have heard us and ran away," Edward added when Carlisle didn't reply. "The human in question was still alive just before we arrived."

Jasper spoke now, looking up from where he sat. "I think that makes it more likely that it was a nomad, you know how skittish they can be."

Carlisle nodded again, not really sure what to think. Then he heard a car pulling up outside.

"Carlisle it's the police, they want to ask for your help examining the body." Edward told him while simultaneously gazing outside.

"Of course, I'll go now," he answered Edward wearily, fervently wishing that it had been a bear attack they were dealing with after all.

On the way out he caught a glimpse of the expression on Sophia's face. He could tell that she had been thinking about the Volturi too. Her face was completely blank but there was a look of terror in her eyes that nearly broke him. He wanted to go over and hug her tightly. To tell her that she was perfectly safe. That he would let no-one harm her at any cost.

But of course he couldn't.

...........................


	8. Chapter 8

_**I've been really busy at the moment with NABs and exam prep, so as always thank you for the support and great reviews, they always cheer me up!**_

_**Also, thank you to my friend Alice who always lets me bounce ideas off her for my twilight stories - it is much appreciated! **_

……………………………

Carlisle had dealt with the corpse from the first animal attack; then the second, a week later; the third, two days after that; even the fourth from last night. The local police force was baffled and it had put the entire group of Cullens on edge. Any creature that could elude them for this amount of time and yet kill within miles of their home had to be dangerous. Alice, however, had seen a vision of the second attack directly before it occurred and although they had not been quick enough to save the woman's life, at least now they knew for certain that it was a vampire they where dealing with. The fourth body had been discovered by Sophia while she was out hunting and Carlisle had found it to have disturbed her greatly. He knew that she was worried that the Volturi had finally caught up with her and admittedly the thought had crossed his mind too. Nevertheless he intended to keep his own counsel on such matters, much for his own sake as Sophia's.

The last few weeks had been some of the strangest for Carlisle. He spent the entire time torn between the three conflicting emotions of guilt, love and lust that threatened to consume him. Yet he was also glad of it because at least now, after so long of feeling nothing, he was experiencing these powerful emotions once more. But it was at a high price. He loathed keeping secrets from his family and yet at the same time the constant fear that every day could be his last with Sophia was enough to prevent him from backing away. He knew that if the Volturi found Sophia they would kill her without any explanation, and the idea of losing her in the same way that he lost Esme was nearly more than he could bear. This fear also meant that any time that was available for them to be together alone was considered precious, something not to be wasted. There was times when they would talk, others when they would lie together in companionable silence. There was also a time when they had taken their relationship further than ever before, and were nearly caught as a consequence. But Carlisle felt that it had been worth it.

It was around lunchtime when he arrived home from the police station where he had been examining the latest casualty. It was pouring down with rain that day, and as he stepped out the car out of the corner of his eye he caught a glimpse of a dark figure standing near the trees opposite the house. He swivelled round to face whatever it was but found that there was nothing there. He shook his head, surprised at his sudden reaction.

'_It could have been anyone,'_ he reminded himself sternly. Yet he could not seem to shake the feeling of unease that he had acquired. Heading into the house he paused and turned to look over his shoulder, but as he peered through the curtain of rain into the gloom beyond he still couldn't see anything out of place.

Once he was inside the feeling slowly disappeared and he vaguely realised that in the short walk from his car to the front door the rain had soaked through both his jumper and white shirt. He headed up the stairs and stepping into his room he closed the door. He then pulled off his wet jumper and started to unbutton his shirt.

"Afternoon." he heard a familiar voice greet him from the other side of the room.

"Sophia." he looked up in surprise and smiled softly. "I didn't see you there."

Walking over to him she placed both her hands on his face. "Something's the matter, isn't it?" Sophia asked him, clearly concerned by his lack of attention to his surroundings.

He shrugged before leaning in and kissing her on the lips. This was then followed by a mutter of "Hard day at work," in reply to her question. The memory of the dark figure outside swam to the surface of his mind. "You weren't outside a few minutes ago, were you?" he enquired suddenly.

She shook her head while wrapping her arms around his neck. "Why do you ask?"

"I thought…" he paused, remembering his resolution to not give her any reason to worry. "Doesn't matter."

"Tell me," she pleaded, kissing him on the neck.

"I just thought I saw someone outside before I came in, that's all."

Sophia smiled slightly, "Well Edward just left, so it could have been him."

Carlisle sighed in relief. Of course it had been Edward. Why else would Sophia be up here now?

"Wait, it couldn't have been Edward." Sophia remarked suddenly. "He left just after you came in the door."

"Oh." Carlisle replied and felt the disappointment wash over him.

"Are you sure it wasn't the shape-shifters?"

"No, I would have been able to smell them." Carlisle replied gloomily while stroking her hair.

"I'm sure it wasn't anything to worry about." Sophia suggested to him out loud. However, her eyes betrayed her true thoughts; she was just as anxious as he was.

"You're probably right." Carlisle told her, attempting reassure both himself and Sophia.

She nodded and reaching up she started to play with the buttons on his shirt. "Anyway Carlisle, weren't you in the middle of something before I came in?"

He raised his eyebrows at this. "Indeed I was."

Now she had started to unbutton the rest of the damp shirt herself and by the time she had finished the last button he was pretty certain that even if Edward had been around at the time, his conflicting thoughts would have been beyond making any sense whatsoever. Carlisle pulled her even closer and started kissing her again, more forcefully this time, his hands entangled in her soft, dark hair. He could hear her heart pounding as he moved down to her neck and he could taste her scent stronger than he had ever tasted it before. It was only the three-hundred-odd years of resisting blood and the fact that he loved her that prevented him from sinking his teeth in her neck there and then; yet he did not pull away either. At the back of his mind there were alarm bells ringing. He knew he needed to stop; to take a breath and clear his head; but yet-

A snarl. He could hear a snarl from somewhere else in the room. He opened his eyes that up until now he hadn't even realised were closed. He scanned the room for the intruder and he froze in shock when his eyes came to rest on the source of the snarl.

Edward was standing in the doorway.

Carlisle had to admit, at this point in time he wasn't in the best of positions. His shirt was half off his body and he guessed by the expression on Edward's face that he had just happened to walk in when he had been kissing Sophia's neck.

"No…" Edward whispered, breaking the heavy silence that had built up in the space of several seconds.

Carlisle didn't know what to say. "Edward, I-"

"No." he heard him repeat softly, staring at him like he was a stranger.

"Edward, please don't-" he began, but before he could finish Edward shook his head, turned and left the room.

Carlisle felt light-headed, like he was looking over the edge of some terrible height. Edward was a son to him and even though he hadn't done anything wrong he felt like for some reason he had betrayed him in some way.

"Oh God," he heard Sophia exclaim quietly beside him.

"I've got to go after him," Carlisle explained suddenly, while simultaneously starting towards the door.

"Wait!" Sophia pleaded from where she stood, "You'd be better to give him some space to calm down first."

Carlisle paused before turning round and walking back over to her.

"Yes, you're probably right." he agreed, "But what should we tell the others?"

Sophia looked rather awkward now. "Em, Carlisle…I think Edward will have told them."

Carlisle ran his hand through his hair, wondering what to do. "Perhaps…I think we better go down and explain properly to the rest."

Sophia nodded, "I don't think they will have reacted as badly as Edward. From what you've told me he was the closest to Esme."

Carlisle nodded and started to redo his shirt buttons.

"And Carlisle," Sophia sounded rather strange. "I'm really sorry about this."

Carlisle paused mid-button and looking up, he realised she had tears in her eyes. He walked over and placing both of his hands on her neck he bent down and kissed her softly. "None of this is your fault." he told her firmly before pulling her into a tight embrace. He just hoped that the others would see it this way.

……………………


	9. Chapter 9

"I think it would be better if I stayed out here."

"Nonsense Sophia," Carlisle replied once they reached the door to the living room.

"Carlisle this is between you and the rest of your family-"

"A family you're part of!"

Sophia shook her head. "It will make things twice as awkward if I'm there and you know it."

Carlisle sighed quietly. He knew she was right but it didn't make things any easier; preparing to go in and face his family alone felt a bit like preparing to jump off a cliff into a cold and unforgiving sea, and Carlisle knew first hand what that felt like. "Fine, you stay here, ok?"

Sophia stroked his cheek softly, "I'll be waiting right here for you."

He lifted her hand away and kissed it in reply. Then, taking a deep breath, he took the plunge and stepped into the living room itself.

Eyes. Eyes everywhere. Everyone in the room was staring at him. Glancing around the room he caught glimpses of familiar faces: Bella; Jasper; Emmett; Alice; Rose. Everyone except Edward, he realised with a pang of guilt. He decided that Alice would be his safest bet, so it was her that he directed his first comment at.

"Where's Edward?" he finally managed to ask, breaking the unnerving silence that had enveloped the room.

"Gone." Alice answered coolly.

"Where?" he pressed on, concerned for his son's safety.

"For a walk."

"Oh," Carlisle replied, relived that Edward hadn't done anything more rash. "When will he be back?"

Alice shrugged. "When he forgives you, I guess," Alice fixed him with a cold stare. "Speaking of which…"

'_Here we go,_' Carlisle thought, bracing himself for the impending storm. He was merely glad that his experiences in the hospital allowed him to hide his emotions.

"What, pray tell me, were you thinking?" Alice started, "I mean, I can't believe I never _saw _this coming-"

"Neither can the rest of us Alice, to be honest," Emmett commented, earning himself a furious glare from Alice.

"Look, I honestly never wanted to upset any of you," Carlisle said quietly, "And for that I am truly sorry."

"Try telling that to Edward…" he then caught Rosalie mutter under her breath.

"Rosalie, I would go after Edward now," Carlisle told her, "But you know how he would react." he walked over to the nearest armchair and sank into it, not really noticing anyone anymore. He was wondering what Esme would suggest he should do just now. She, after all, had been a mother to Edward and she had known his moods inside out. _'But she isn't here now.' _he reminded himself sternly, _'Sophia is…'_

And he knew Sophia was right about not going to find Edward straight away. He knew it was best to give him awhile before confronting him. The problem was, Carlisle didn't know how long _he _could wait.

He looked up and found Alice was now beside him, her expression slightly softer than before.

"Where's Sophia now?" she asked him gently.

"Outside," Carlisle mumbled, "But look don't take it out on her, it's not her-"

"Fault? She's done more wrong than you have!" Rosalie growled suddenly, letting her chagrin at the situation show through. "She's putting us all in danger! How could you let her stay Carlisle? Why would you-"

"Shut up Rosalie," Alice finally snapped at her. "Not now, ok?"

"Why not?" Rosalie retorted angrily, glaring at Carlisle.

Emmett intervened now, laying a hand on Rosalie's shoulder. "Because now's not the time, Rose, alright?"

"Wait," Carlisle looked up, the truth finally dawning on him. "None of you want her here, do you?"

"Sophia…Sophia is a nice girl," Alice began, choosing her words with great care. "And _some _of us don't mind her being her as long as you are happy with it." she glanced over at Rosalie again. "Certain _other _people, however…"

"…Don't like the fact you are putting the rest of us in danger by having a girl around that we don't know anything about, is on the run from the Volturi and is potentially putting us all at risk!" Rosalie finished the sentence for Alice and folded her arms defiantly. "And what about Esme, Carlisle?"

There was silence in the room as an icy chill descended on the company. No-one had dared bring Esme into the argument until now and Rosalie's comment had cut through him like a knife. Carlisle had heard enough. He stood up and turned to face Rosalie.

"I am going to look for Edward now," he explained calmly, "And while I'm away I want you _all _to keep to yourselves and make sure you do not hassle Sophia in any way." he glanced around the room levelly. "Is that understood?"

He watched nearly everyone nod silently. Rosalie just glowered at him, arms still folded. He then turned and headed out of the room before he could lose his nerve.

He found Sophia waiting outside, as promised, sitting on the staircase. He walked over and sat beside her.

"How did it go?" she enquired anxiously.

"Didn't you listen in?" Carlisle asked, rather surprised.

She smiled wryly. "You lot speak so quietly that even I wouldn't have a chance of overhearing anything."

He took her hand and held in in his lap. "I need to go and find Edward now, so I need you to make sure you stay here where Alice and the others can protect you."

"So you are still worried about the person outside?" Sophia looked at him curiously.

"I would just feel better if you stayed here for the moment." he replied, stroking her hand absentmindedly. "Is that a problem?"

"No, it isn't really," she sighed and leaned against his shoulder. "Although it'll be incredibly awkward." she smiled slightly at him.

He smiled back, then kissed her on the forehead and stood up. "I'm sure you'll survive." he told her jokingly.

Sophia stood up too. "Take care, Carlisle," she told him seriously.

"I always do." he replied, bending down and kissing her on the lips this time. He then turned and made his way out the front door.

His plan was to start the search at the cottage and continue from there. Once he was out the front door, however, he heard a strange noise from nearby. He spun around, but could see nothing.

'_You're just paranoid,' _he told himself firmly, yet once again that strange feeling of distinct unease rose up inside him once more. He chose to ignore it. Finding Edward was his priority now.

…………………………….

Sophia was still sitting on the steps once Carlisle had left. She lent her head against the cool steel of the metal banister and closed her eyes, trying to let her mind recover from today's events. It was while she was sitting there that she heard someone cry out from the living room. Leaping up she sprinted through only to find Alice kneeling on the ground, fingers pressed against her temples. Jasper was kneeling beside her, grasping her arm to hold her steady.

"What did you see?" she heard Jasper ask quickly.

"I saw the vampire behind the killings," she whispered, "I saw him here and I saw a pool of blood on the floor."

"Blood?" she heard Rosalie repeat incredulously.

Alice nodded silently.

"Nessie's?" Bella asked Alice in a whisper.

This time she shook her head. "No, I saw the rest of us too, Nessie was there."

Sophia could her heartbeat quicken in fear as she realised straight away what the others had not.

Emmett spoke now. "But none of the rest of us have any-" Suddenly he turned to look at the door. Everyone else also turned in realisation to look at Sophia, who stood unmoving in doorway. She felt like some insignificant little creature caught in the glare of the headlights of an oncoming car.

There was a resounding crash from behind them as the huge glass window in the living room shattered into a million pieces.

She could hear someone laughing.

………………………………........


	10. Chapter 10

He eventually found Edward sitting in a tall pine tree, not far in fact from where the first body was found. He had his back to Carlisle, and was looking out into the gray gloom beyond that was turning blacker as night time approached.

"Edward." Carlisle called softly from where he stood.

Edward didn't reply, but a slight movement of his head assured Carlisle that he had heard and was simply choosing not to reply.

"Come down," he continued hesitantly, "Please."

This time Edward did reply. "Not now Carlisle."

"Edward, I want to talk to you…." he paused and rephrased his sentence, "I need to talk to you."

"Alright then," Edward answered suddenly, and with a single, lithe movement he leapt off the branch and turned to face him.

"Thank you Edward." he told him earnestly, stepping forward. "I-"

"What about Esme?" Edward interrupted, looking him in the eye.

"What do you mean?"

"What about Esme?" Edward repeated again slowly, refusing to look away. "Did you not love her?"

Carlisle was at a loss. He didn't know how to explain that he loved Esme and Sophia equally, albeit in different ways. Esme had been his first true love, but Sophia had been there for him at a time when he couldn't turn to anyone else. "I loved her more than anything Edward, and you know that," he eventually replied.

Edward looked at him strangely. "Then why hurt Sophia?"

Carlisle was stunned. "Edward, I love her! I wouldn't dream of hurting her,"

"Then why lie to us?" Edward pressed. "Why keep it a secret?"

"I was trying to do the right thing." Carlisle told him in a strained voice.

Edward shook his head. "The right thing for you, perhaps." he said quietly. A heavy silence hung between them. Then Edward turned and disappeared into the woods once more.

Carlisle pretty much hated himself at that point in time. He didn't know what to do.

He didn't want to hurt Sophia.

He didn't want to hurt his family.

But he was sick of suffering by himself.

It was then that he caught the sound of something shattering in the distance.

He started to run.

………………………………......

Sophia spun round to face the shattered window. Her heart was beating furiously as she tried to spot the intruder. Suddenly someone slammed into her and threw her to the ground. She cried out in pain as a shard of glass from the floor sank into her side.

"And what do we have here?" a voice sneered from behind her. "I see Carlisle's been harbouring more fugitives."

Sophia twisted around so she could see her assailant. A tall, dark haired vampire with a rat-like face smiled menacingly down at her.

"Get away from her!" she heard Alice growl at him furiously.

"Now now, don't be hasty," the vampire sneered, glancing up at Alice. A cruel smile played on his lips. He lent a foot casually on top of Sophia as he spoke and she flinched as a burning pain seared through her ribcage. "We wouldn't want any more accidents now, would we?" he added carefully, looking at each of the Cullens in turn.

"Why the hell are you here?" Alice hissed sharply.

"I've come to take what is mine," the vampire answered. "And do you know the Volturi take a very hard view of those found to be hiding Children of the Moon?"

"So the Volturi sent you!" Emmett growled.

"The Volturi ordered me to track down this werewolf," the vampire smiled maliciously. "Whoever happens to get hurt in order to do so is none of their concern. After all, their interests lie as always with the safety of the vampire society as a whole." he reached down and pulled Sophia up onto her knees. She could feel the warm blood pulsing from the wound on her side and soaking through her torn clothes.

"We won't let you harm her!" Alice threatened, stepping closer towards them. In response there was a sickening crunch as the vampire crushed Sophia's shoulder, causing her to cry out in pain.

"Oh, and if any of you interfere," the vampire continued as though nothing had happened, "All the lives of the vampires within this coven will be forfeit." He raised his eyebrows mockingly. "So what will it be?"

………………………….

The first thing Carlisle noticed as he came closer to the house was that the window had been shattered. The next thing was the smell of the blood_. 'Not human blood,' _he realised with a pang, _'Sophia's blood!'. _He raced as fast as he could towards the house, only to pause in shock as he saw clearly what was happening. The rest of his family stood in the living room facing a gray-cloaked figure that Carlisle could only presume was from the Volturi. A chill descended on him as he saw who was lying at the intruder's feet.

"Oh Sophia!" he whispered to himself, shaking his head. The others, far too preoccupied, hadn't seemed to have noticed his arrival. He crept closer, realising that he could surprise the attacker. As he moved he heard someone cry out. He looked up and consequently felt a burning anger as he realised it was Sophia who was in pain.

Leaping up he sprinted through the remains of the shattered window and throwing himself against the attacker they both went crashing to the floor. The dark-haired vampire managed to get the upper hand and grabbing Carlisle he threw him to the other side of the room. Carlisle pulled himself up off the floor only to find that his opponent had got a hold of Sophia once more and was obviously intent on using her as a shield.

"Let her go," Carlisle growled at the intruder. "You are outnumbered as it is."

The other vampire laughed coldly. "That may be so Carlisle, but I know you. I know you wouldn't let them kill me unless there was no other choice. I know you are loath to take the life of another," the vampire reached up and stroked Sophia's cheek. "I, on the other hand, have no such reservations."

"She has done nothing to harm you or anyone else," Carlisle tried desperately to reason, "Let her go."

"I have my orders Carlisle," the vampire replied, "Do not try and interfere. The Volturi have already punished you once for your lack of care. It would not be wise to risk anything again."

"What do you mean, punished-" Carlisle paused. "Esme," he whispered in sudden realisation.

The vampire smiled humourlessly. "I would have thought you would have got the message by now. The Volturi does not like others interfering with their rules."

"Let her go," Carlisle repeated again softly, taking a step closer.

"Oh I will," the vampire sneered, "But only after-ARGH!" the vampire cried out in pain as Sophia bit into his hand. This moment of distraction gave the others the opportunity needed. Emmett and Jasper rushed forward to meet the vampire as Carlisle ran forward to catch Sophia, who had collapsed onto the floor unconscious. Meanwhile Alice had started to prepare a fire outside.

Carlisle, however, was far more concerned with Sophia's welfare at the moment; besides, he knew now that nothing he could do or say would stop them taking revenge for Esme's murder. Trying his best to ignore the smell of her blood he focused on making sure that Sophia's condition was stable. He grew more and more concerned however as he found her pulse to be growing weaker and by the time he examined the wound from the glass shard he was starting to panic. He picked up her lifeless form as easily as a rag doll and turning from the chaos of the living room he carried her upstairs to the makeshift hospital room that had been set up when Bella had been pregnant.

It was much quieter in the room but as he went over and placed Sophia onto the bed he could distinctly smell the burning fire from downstairs. He paused for one moment to take in Sophia's gray pallor and her blood stained clothing before getting to work, letting his centuries of training as a doctor detach him from the paralyzing fear that lingered in the back of his mind.

……………………………..


	11. Chapter 11

He started on the wound in her side first, picking out the glass shards one by one. He tried not to think about it too much because he knew that if he remained himself that it was Sophia that was bleeding to death then he would not be able to do his job. It was far more difficult than her ever could have imagined.

It was nearly an hour later when he stopped to take a break and to wash away some of the blood from his hands. The overwhelming earthy scent of her blood would haunt him for the rest of his life, he knew that much. He had managed to keep her stable so far, but now only time would be the judge of whether or not she survived. He pulled over the nearest armchair beside the bed and slumped into it, finally allowing the emotions of the day to hit him. He was absolutely shattered. Pulled his legs up against his chest and leaning his head on his knees he sat and looked at the broken girl lying on the bed. He reached out with one hand and tucked some of her hair away from her face. The blackness of it contrasted deeply with the paleness of her face. He stroked her cheek softly, tracing the old scar that ran along the side of her face. A blunt reminder of the dangers that he had promised her he would keep her safe from.

A few hours later and Carlisle still hadn't moved. It was dark outside now and the moon shone in through the window, casting a silver light on his surroundings. The room was silent apart from for Sophia's shallow breathing and the faint beating of her heart. He looked up suddenly, startled at the sound of the door opening, only to find Alice coming over to him, a cup in one hand.

"I thought you could do with some nourishment." she explained while holding out the cup to him. He took the cup, only to find that he couldn't bring himself to drink the deer's blood. The smell of Sophia's blood still lingered in the back of his mind. He passed the cup back.

"Thank you, but I'm not thirsty."

She placed the cup on a nearby table and came over to sit on the edge of the armchair.

"How is she?" she asked him quietly.

"Alive." he murmured wearily. "Barely." he added.

She nodded and sat in silence for a moment. "We burned the vampire. We didn't want him coming back again."

Carlisle sighed heavily. "More will come. You know Aro and Caius fear the Children of the Moon," he glanced over at Sophia's lifeless form. "They will not rest until every last one is dead."

Alice lent over and kissed him lightly on the forehead. "Her future isn't set in stone Carlisle." she stood up as delicately as ever. "But I do not think she will die."

He looked up and smiled weakly. "Well I hope you are right then."

She smiled back. "I usually am."

Carlisle watched Alice as she turned and left the room. He hadn't felt quite so empty and alone since the time that they had found Esme's remains. For some reason the image of Sophia and of Esme's death had merged together in his mind. He shook his head and closed his eyes, trying to get rid of the disturbing images that plagued him. It was times like these that he missed being human, for at least then he could sleep to escape the pain. As a vampire all he could do was sit, wait and perhaps even hope…

_What will I do if she dies?_

_She won't die!_

_She might._

_She can't…_

He had maintained his vigil for the rest of the night, the same thoughts going through his head over and over. It was only as the sun began to rise that he bothered to move. Standing up and stretching out of habit, he started to check Sophia's wounds once more. They seemed to be healing and that made Carlisle feel slightly better. It was while he was redressing some of the bandages that he heard a knock at the door.

"Come in." he muttered while still continuing to tend to Sophia. He heard someone walk over to him but it came as a shock when he looked up and realised who it was.

"Edward," he whispered in surprise.

Edward smiled humourlessly. "Carlisle, I came to-" he glanced at the bed and his eyes widened in shock as he saw the state she was in. "What happened?" he muttered hoarsely.

"Sophia was attacked while I was out looking for you." Carlisle explained quietly, looking away from his son. He went back to his work with the bandages, and neither spoke for a while.

"Carlisle I'm-"

"It's fine Edward, don't worry about it." he replied shortly. "Pass me that syringe over there, please."

Edward didn't move. "Look Carlisle, I really am-"

"Edward if you are sorry then you came help me by passing the syringe over," Carlisle cut in sharply.

Edward passed the syringe over without comment. Neither of them spoke for a minute or so.

"I'm sorry Edward." Carlisle muttered suddenly. "I should not have been so blunt."

"I probably deserved it." Edward replied with an apologetic smile. "Anything I can help you with?"

"Not really." Carlisle replied, packing away the leftover bandages. "Although if you want you can check over those sonograms and x-rays - see if I missed anything last night. I was in a bit of a rush."

Edward nodded and picked some of them up off the table. Meanwhile Carlisle was checking some graphs to make sure that Sophia's vitals hadn't changed dramatically.

"Carlisle," Edward called after a moment. "There's something unusual here. Not sure what it is though, perhaps it will make more sense to you."

Carlisle went over and took the sonogram that Edward was currently studying. It was one of the scans he had done last night to double check that none of the organs had been damaged. He looked over the scan, wondering what he could have possibly missed last night. Then he saw it. He walked over and sank into the nearest chair, staring at the picture in his hand in disbelief. Memories came flooding back to him. Memories of his bedroom one night; of clothes lying discarded on the floor; of her warm body next to his. He got up and checked some of the other sonograms to make sure he wasn't mistaken. But there it was.

Sophia was pregnant.

With his child.


	12. Chapter 12

Carlisle couldn't believe it. A child. His child. It should be impossible. He had always thought that once he was a vampire having children would be a closed book to him. Even after Edward and Bella had Nessie, he hand always just accepted that it would never happen with him. After all, he hadn't expected to lose Esme. Or to fall in love with Sophia. Sophia. Who was now pregnant with his child.

Carlisle looked up from where he was sitting. Edward looked to be in nearly as much shock as he was.

"Carlisle," Edward murmured faintly. "Tell me I didn't just see in your mind what I thought I just saw."

Carlisle shook his head slowly. "She's pregnant."

"With…_your_ child?" Edward whispered, staring at him strangely.

"Well unless she's been having any secret affairs you haven't told me about." Carlisle answered jokingly, managing a weak smile.

Edward shook his head. "It's yours alright." he paused to look at Sophia. "Well, I suppose it's a bit too soon for congratulations but…"

"Congratulations?" Carlisle heard Alice say as she entered the room. "Why, what's happened?"

Edward glanced sideways at Carlisle. "Erm, well…"

Carlisle finished the sentence for Edward. "Sophia's pregnant." he muttered quietly.

"What?" Alice exclaimed, looking from Carlisle to Sophia and then back again. "Wait, with your child?"

Carlisle nodded.

Alice paused for a moment, and then a huge grin spread across her face. "This is brilliant! A little baby Carlisle! Oh, I hope it's a boy-"

"Alice," Edward interrupted quickly, "Let's just wait and see how Sophia gets on first."

"Oh," the smile faded from her face. "Yeah, you're right…" she glanced over at Sophia. "How is she?"

"She doesn't appear to be getting any worse." Carlisle answered.

"Well that's good news then." Alice replied, brightening up slightly.

"Carlisle," Edward began, "What…what do you think the child will be like? With her being a werewolf and all?"

Carlisle hadn't even thought that far yet. A vampire and a werewolf? It would have been a fascinating conundrum if it didn't put Sophia's life in danger. He felt rather sick. What if it was like Bella and Nessie? What if it killed her?

"Carlisle, are you alright?" Alice asked him, clearly concerned.

"Fine, fine." he murmured.

"I think we should give him some peace." Edward looked over at Alice who nodded in agreement. "We'll be back later."

Carlisle nodded weakly. Alice glanced at him pityingly and the pair of them left. Carlisle sighed heavily and ran his hand through his hair. He wasn't sure what he should do. He got up and sat on the bed beside Sophia. He picked up her limp hand and kissed it softy. It comforted him a little that her hand was slightly warmer than last night.

It was late evening when he first began to notice it. First, her heartbeat started to slowly improve. He had been listening to it all day so his finely tuned senses could detect the changes easily. The next thing he noticed was there was the heat returning to her body; heat that had all but disappeared over the last day or so. He could feel it searing against the icy skin of his palm as he held her hand. She was warmer than any human he had ever looked after but the burning did not bother him. It comforted him, assured him she was alive.

………………………………

It was a strange sensation that finally caused her to open her eyes. All over her body she could feel the pain burning, coursing through her veins. Yet her hand was freezing cold. She couldn't figure it out. So she opened her eyes. She found her answer.

Carlisle. He was sitting beside her, looking out the window. She smiled, glad to see him. She noticed her looked tired. She wondered why.

Then she remembered.

The window; the shattered glass; the vampire; the blood. Her blood. The darkness that came as she collapsed into Carlisle's arms. She had thought she was dying.

"Carlisle," Sophia whispered softly. She smiled again at the look of shock on his face when he saw she was awake. He leant down and kissed her forehead lightly.

"How do you feel?" Carlisle asked anxiously.

"Terrible," she muttered, "But I think I'll live," she added with a grimace as she attempted in vain to sit up.

"Glad to hear it," he replied, smiling, yet the smile did not quite reach his eyes.

She reached up and touched his face lightly. "What's wrong, Carlisle?"

He shook his head. "I'm fine," he assured her, taking her hand and kissing it. "You should get some rest."

She nodded, closing her eyes, and before she could say anything more she had drifted back off to sleep.

………………………………

It was the next day when Carlisle told her the truth. He had deliberately avoided telling her by making up various excuses: She was too tired yet; the shock would make her ill again; he needed to prepare himself first. Yet the real reason was that he was afraid of how she would react. What if she wasn't ready for a child? What if she insisted on leaving? What if she got rid of the child? His child…

She took it far better than he could have hoped. He secretly felt guilty about this because although he was extremely relieved that she insisted on keeping it, he was still afraid of what might happen to her if she had the baby. The morning sickness had started the day after that and the early onset of the sickness hinted that the pregnancy was going to be much the same as Bella's. It was certainly showing the same pattern. It scared him more than he let on to Sophia. However he hoped that because she was slightly less fragile than a human that it wouldn't affect her as badly.

A more welcome surprise was that Edward was taking the whole thing rather well. Carlisle suspected it was because Edward understood entirely what he was going through emotionally and so he was glad for the empathy. Once Sophia was up and about again Bella was also very supportive, providing Sophia was the kind of companionship and understanding that Carlisle knew he would not be able to provide.

But Carlisle also knew that the next few weeks were potentially going to be the toughest of her life. For that reason he was absolutely dreading it.

………………………………


	13. Chapter 13

**(Random fact: Do you know there's a place near where I live that's called Carlisle?)**

**Anyway…back to the story: with hindsight I kind-of realised this new plot 'twist' was a bit like **_**Breaking Dawn**_**, but in my defence, who could resist the possibility of a little baby Carlisle?**

………………………………

It was the second week of her pregnancy and Carlisle was currently sitting in beside Sophia, who was currently sleeping. Just like Bella she had ended up taking up near permanent residence in the living room and so Carlisle had found himself spending most of his days there. He had even rearranged a lot of his shifts at the hospital simply so that he could stay with her more often. But even that wasn't enough. He wanted to be there constantly, to make sure that nothing went wrong. Because that was what he was expecting to happen.

Never before had Carlisle felt any less inclination to go hunting than in the last few days, and it was only the risk that he thought he might pose to Sophia if he was underfed that made him leave at all. It hurt him especially that the one person whose blood actually tempted him anymore was also now the one person he was completely in love with. It was a bitter irony that made understand better than before what Edward had gone through with Bella.

And what about the baby? Would it smell the same as its mother? Would he, in fact, be the biggest threat to his only child?

Carlisle shuddered slightly and reached out to stroke Sophia's cheek. Her eyes flickered open and she smiled tiredly.

"How are you feeling?" he asked her anxiously.

"I'm okay…" she muttered sleepily. "A little tired."

"But you've not got in pain, have you? Any sore ribs? No broken bones?"

She shook her head. "No, I haven't-" she paused and reached down to her stomach, which by now was getting quite large. "It's moving," she murmured softly, and taking his hand she placed it on her stomach. "Can you feel it?"

He nodded silently. It was one thing as a doctor to see or feel another patient's baby, quite another to feel your own child.

"Our child," he heard her whisper softly, and a chill ran down his spine. It was at that point when he realised that whatever he decided from now on, Sophia would never let the child be destroyed.

……………………………

"Carlisle, relax, will you?" Alice snapped at him irritably while perched on the black marble worktop. "She's fine."

"Are you sure?" he pressed, pacing up and down the kitchen restlessly. It was nearing the third week and although Sophia had gotten bigger, she didn't seem to be any worse off for it. Not that this comforted Carlisle in the slightest.

"Look," Jasper interrupted, "Perhaps because she is a werewolf she won't react the same as Bella. After all, it isn't interfering with Alice's visions like Nessie did."

"But what if it's just because nothing has happened yet?" Carlisle whispered softly, stopping mid-way through another lap of the kitchen. He ran his hand subconsciously through his hair. "What if-" he broke off as he heard Sophia call him from the living room. He glanced at Alice and Jasper, but they both looked equally as confused. Puzzled, he turned and headed out the room, leaving his sentence hanging and unfinished.

He entered the living room to find Sophia kneeling on the floor and currently being sick into a bucket that had been provided by Bella. He ran over and once she had finished he lifted her up gently and placed her back onto the sofa.

"Do you want some water?" he asked her once she was settled on the sofa.

She shook her head slightly. "No," she muttered weakly, "I don't think I could stomach anything right now."

He felt fear gathering in the back of his mind, but he tried to ignore it. "Are you sure? Not even meat?"

She shook her head again. "No… not the cooked stuff anyway…" she smiled slightly. "I miss our little hunting trips."

"Me too," he replied, kissing her on the forehead.

She shifted slightly on the cushions and sighed. "I'd kill for some fresh meat for a change, you know, the still-bloody sort-"

"I thought the blood bothered you?" Carlisle interrupted sharply.

"I know," she paused thoughtfully. "I'm not sure what it is."

Carlisle felt the knot in his stomach tightened. He stood up shakily. "I'll be back in a second." he whispered before making his way back to the kitchen. He glanced at Alice and Jasper before heading over to the fridge and opening the huge door.

"What are you looking for?" Alice enquired, puzzled.

Carlisle didn't reply, but instead he continued to rummage in the fridge drawer before eventually pulling out what he was looking for. Closing the fridge door, he then went over to the nearest worktop and, placing the flask that he had retrieved from the fridge onto the worktop, he also took a glass from the nearest cupboard. Jasper and Alice continued to watch him as he unscrewed the flask and poured the dark-red liquid into the glass. Once he had done this he placed the lid back on and, picking up both glass and flask, he turned to face the pair.

"She wants blood," he finally explained in a strained voice. "That means the child is going to feed on blood. Just like us. Just like Nessie."

………………………………

"Ow!"

"What's wrong?"

"I think it just bit me!"

"Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure Carlisle!" Sophia growled at him. "You're not the one with the blood-sucking vampire growing inside-"

"Easy now," Carlisle muttered soothingly. "Calm down Sophia, please,"

"Did she just say that 'it bit her'?" Rosalie muttered incredulously as she, Edward, Bella and Jacob joined them in the living room.

"Yes, that's right, it bit me." Sophia answered, glaring at her from the sofa.

"Is that even possible?" Rosalie replied doubtfully, glancing at Carlisle.

Sophia growled at her. "And how would you know-"

"Now stop it both of you," Carlisle cut in sharply. "She's due in less than a week and I doubt stress will do child or mother any favours."

"_Child? _I thought it bit her, Carlisle!" Rosalie exclaimed haughtily.

"A bit rich coming from you, Blondie…" Jacob commented, smirking slightly.

"No-one asked for your opinion, dog-"

"Oh God," Sophia cried out suddenly, and they all turned to look at her.

"Sophia, what is it?" Carlisle asked sharply, fear once again twisting and writhing in the pit of his stomach.

She didn't reply, but instead was clutching the side of her stomach as though in pain. Reaching over, he pulled her hand away gently only to find that a large gash had formed on the side of her stomach and was starting to bleed heavily. He stared at the bright red liquid in shock as it started to drip onto his hand. It was their child that was doing this to her…his child.

"Carlisle, get her up the stairs, now!" Edward ordered sharply, bringing him back to his senses. He nodded, and picking her up as gently as he could, he carried her up the stairs as quickly as possible.

Once he was in the upstairs room he was also joined by Edward, who started to set up the equipment with a grim expression on his face. It took Carlisle several seconds to realise why he had that look on his face. Edward thought Sophia was going to die.

"_No…_" he whispered to himself, refusing to accept it. He wouldn't let her die. And he wasn't going to let the child die either. She knew she would kill him if he did that. '_If she survives at all,' _the voice in the back of his mind pointed out. He shook his head as if it might somehow get rid of the dark and ominous thoughts, and instead he tried to focus on what he did best: saving lives.

…………………………

Several hours later and Carlisle was sure he was still suffering from shock. Memories kept on running though his mind: the blood; the chaos; Sophia's agony as he cut her open; the terror that had burned up inside him as he felt her life slipping away from his grasp He felt too numb, too cold, too tired to try and ignore the memories. So instead he sat there and saw them play in his head over and over again. Sitting in the armchair that he had seen far too much of over the last few months, he silently kept vigil once more over Sophia who still lay on the bed, not moving. Not stirring. She was cold.

But she was still alive. Still breathing.

Not only that, but now he held in his arms his little spark of hope; his only solace in the last few dark hours. The tiny baby boy shifted slightly, curled up tightly in his father's arms. Although he was resting now, Carlisle could remember what the baby's eyes had looked like when he first saw them.

Grey, just like Sophia's.

And he smelt just like Sophia too, which was actually a small comfort to Carlisle.

'_If only she would wake up, then everything would be perfect.' _he thought to himself.

'_If only.'_

………………………………


	14. Epilogue

It was late May and Carlisle was sitting against an old pine tree, facing the grassy lawn at the back of their house. It was around lunchtime and for once in Forks the sunlight was beating down furiously from a clear-blue sky. All of the Cullens, plus Jacob, were outside enjoying the warmth. Carlisle wore an old, faded blue shirt that he had refused to get rid of, despite numerous protests from Alice, mainly because he didn't want to run the risk of getting paw marks on his work clothes.

While most of them were basking in the sunlight, Jacob - in wolf form - was playing chase in the middle of the garden with Nessie and a small, golden wolf cub.

"Be careful Jacob…" Carlisle warned him as the huge wolf pounced on the tiny bundle of fur.

"You worry too much, Carlisle," came a voice from behind. "He'll be fine."

He turned his head and smiled as Sophia came over and sat down beside him. She rested her head on his shoulder and started to play with his hair absentmindedly. He couldn't help but notice the faint white scar that, as always, ran down the side of her face. It reminded him of another scar too, the one that ran down her stomach; that he had been responsible for. The one that had been necessary to save their child's life, and had nearly cost Sophia her own. Carlisle shivered slightly as the memories, several months ago now, still struck a chord of fear inside him. And even now they were all in danger. He didn't think that Caius would react well if he knew there was a vampiric-Child of the Moon running around, especially if he knew the child had developed that ability to transform at will. He and Aro would probably send orders to kill them all on account of treason...but of course, Carlisle didn't even know how he would begin to avoid Edward, Alice or anyone else for that matter, even if it was for their own safety.

"What's the matter?" Sophia murmured, oblivious to the direction that his thoughts had taken.

"Nothing. Nothing at all." he replied quietly, picking up her hand and kissing it softly.

"Look who's coming," Sophia said suddenly, laughing as the little golden wolf bounded over towards Carlisle and leapt up onto his stomach.

"Gabriel!" Carlisle exclaimed, laughing too. "You've got paw prints on my shirt again."

The boy who now sat in place of the wolf cub smiled sheepishly at him, his long golden hair hanging around his face and framing his light-gray eyes like curtains. Alice had taken the liberty of dressing the toddler up in a blue shirt and beige trousers which, much to Sophia's amusement and Alice's chagrin, were now covered in grass and mud stains. Carlisle watched as Gabriel turned back into his wolf form and curled up in between him and Sophia.

However the smile faded from Carlisle's face as he was reminded that his son, too, was oblivious to the dangers that he would be facing his entire life from the Volturi.

He sighed heavily and Sophia glanced up at him. This time she seemed to catch on to the direction of his thoughts.

"Don't worry," Sophia whispered softly, stroking his hair. "It'll all be fine. You'll see."

Looking down at the little golden cub curled up between them, and the young woman that lay beside him, Carlisle fervently hoped that she was right…

And with the sun shining and a pleasant breeze playing across his face, he found that it was far too easy to believe that it would be so.

……………………………….......

_**Sorry, but I'm a sucker for happy endings, alright! Still, I hoped you enjoyed reading they story as much as I enjoyed writing it!**_

_**Thank you for all the brilliant reviews and to all the people that have been reading the story from the beginning, the support is much appreciated as always!**_


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